Wednesday 5 June 2013

'Liz & Dick' vs. 'Burton and Taylor' -- which pair is better?

They haven't been a couple since 1976. He hasn't been alive since 1984, and she died in 2011. Yet Welsh-born Richard Burton and British-American Elizabeth Taylor, the on-again, off-again co-stars, spouses, lovers and fighters are having something of a Hollywood Renaissance -- with the second of two movies about them set to air later this year.
But how will "Burton and Taylor" -- the BBC's take -- measure up against Lifetime's "Liz & Dick," which aired last Thanksgiving? Here's a breakdown of both films, and a chance for you to tell us which pairing you think will be the better love/hate match.
Lindsay Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor and Grant Bowler as Richard Burton.
Lifetime
Lindsay Lohan as Elizabeth Taylor and Grant Bowler as Richard Burton.
'Liz & Dick'
Starring: Lindsay Lohan and Grant Bowler
British Factor: 25% -- Bowler's from New Zealand; Lohan New York.
 An overview of the couple's troubled relationship, with looks into some of the films they co-starred in, including "Cleopatra" and "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?"
Star Power: Party animal and legal trainwreck Lohan ensured the movie would get a lot of press, but her co-star Bowler is a virtual unknown in the U.S. (He recently signed on to host "The Amazing Race Australia.")

 Terrible reviews, terrible ratings. Touted as Lohan's "comeback" role, it was nothing of the sort; The Hollywood Reporter called it "spectacularly bad."
Dominic West as Richard Burton and Helena Bonham Carter as Elizabeth Taylor.
BBC America
Dominic West as Richard Burton and Helena Bonham Carter as Elizabeth Taylor.
'Burton and Taylor'
Starring: Dominic West and Helena Bonham Carter
British Factor: 100 percent: West is from Yorkshire, England; Bonham Carter from London.
 A focused look at the couple as they reunited one last time in a Broadway performance of an adaptation of the Noel Coward play "Private Lives" in 1983. He would die the following year, and the performance did not go over well with critics.
Star Power: West was most recently seen in "The Hour," but fans of "The Wire" will recognize him as the womanising, often-drunk Baltimore police detective Jimmy McNulty from. Bonham Carter frequently appears in Tim Burton's films (he's her long-time beau) and has two Oscar nominations, the most recent of which is for "The King's Speech."

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